Oct. 29, 2016
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MINNEAPOLIS - Despite a match-high 17 kills from junior outside hitter Simone Lee, the No. 10 Penn State women's volleyball team (17-6, 9-3 Big Ten) split the series with the No. 3 Minnesota Golden Gophers (17-4, 9-3 Big Ten), as the Nittany Lions fell, 3-0 (17-25, 20-25, 18-25), inside Sports Pavilion Saturday evening.
Lee was the default option for the Nittany Lions on Saturday night, scoring 17 kills to lead all players. The Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, native hit at a .306 clip, and logged her second double-double of the season with 11 digs.
The middle blocker duo of junior Haleigh Washington and redshirt freshman Tori Gorrell added seven kills each. Washington posted a team-best four blocks. Junior right side Heidi Thelen added six kills and a pair of rejections.
Freshman libero Kendall White led the back row effort, averaging five digs per set, while sophomore defensive specialist Keeton Holcomb added eight digs.
Penn State returns to the friendly confines of Rec Hall next weekend. The Nittany Lions begin the weekend slate with the No. 1 Nebraska Cornhuskers on Friday, Nov. 4, at 8 p.m., with the match set for national broadcast on the Big Ten Network. PSU then has a quick turnaround, taking on Iowa the next day at 4 p.m.
The match began with the teams swapping points to a 3-3 tie. An overpass kill by Gorrell gave PSU a brief lead, before tying again at 4-all. Washington scored back-to-back points on a ferocious block before a kill off the slide for a 6-4 advantage. Minnesota came back to tie the match at 8-8, when a kill from Lee regained the Penn State lead. A pair of spikes from Lee and a quick kill from Gorrell in the middle gave PSU an 11-9 lead, before Minnesota responded with five points in a row. A kill from Frantti cut Minnesota's lead to two, before the Gophers scored the next point for a 15-12 lead at the media timeout.
Minnesota scored on a kill and a block to go up five, forcing Penn State's first timeout, behind 17-12. Penn State scored off a service error from the Gophers, but Minnesota responded with two more points, forcing PSU's second timeout, down 20-13. Lee scored three times out of the break on big swings to cut the score to five at 21-16. Minnesota scored three straight before a kill from Lee fended off set point. The Gophers scored on the next play for a 25-17, set one victory.
The Gophers were hot out the gates, beginning on a 4-0 run to start the second. Detering hammered down a kill to break up the run, when the teams went point-for-point with Lee, Gorrell, Washington and Thelen all scoring on kills to a 10-7 score in Minnesota's favor. A block from Thelen and Washington cut the lead to three, before a Minnesota kill at the end of a long rally found Penn State trailing, 15-11, at the second-set media timeout.
Washington spiked the ball to close the gap back to three points following the break, before Minnesota responded with two points of its own. Penn State called for time, trailing 17-12. Detering and Lee scored on kills to pull within four at 18-14. Both sides traded points, with Thelen, Lee and junior outside hitter Ali Frantti scoring before Penn State called for time, down 22-17. Thelen tooled the block and Frantti provided a late ace, but Minnesota proved too tough, taking the second, 25-20.
The Nittany Lions took the opening point of the third on a powerful kill from Detering. Two plays later Lee and Washington posted a major rejection for a 2-1 lead. Minnesota scored three in a row before another kill from Lee closed the gap to one at 4-3. A pair of powerful kills from Lee and Thelen made the score 6-5 for Minnesota. A pair of kills from Lee and another by Gorrell made it 10-9 in the Gophers' favor. Minnesota opened a 4-1 spurt to climb ahead four, before Gorrell scored her sixth kill of the match to make the score 14-11. Minnesota scored the next play, with the score 15-11 heading into the media timeout.
Minnesota scored two of the next three points, forcing a Penn State timeout, trailing 17-12. Lee, Washington and Frantti each scored as the two sides traded points, with Minnesota edging ahead at 20-15. Lee and Gorrell tacked on kills to make the set score 22-17. Washington added a kill, but Minnesota took the final two points to win the match with a 25-18 decisive third.
NOTES:
Team
- No. 10 Penn State was defeated by No. 3 Minnesota, 3-1 (17-25, 20-25, 18-25), Saturday evening in Minneapolis.
- The Nittany Lions are now 17-6 in 2016, with a 9-3 record in Big Ten matches.
- Penn State saw Simone Lee post a match-high 17 kills, leading the Nittany Lions in the statistical category for the 21st time in 2016.
- Two Penn State players logged double-figure digs in the loss. Kendall White led the way with 15, while Lee added 11, logging her second double-double of the season
Series
- Penn State holds a 46-10 edge all-time against the Gophers, and a 19-7 mark when facing Minnesota in Minneapolis.
- The loss splits the season series at 1-1.
Players
Simone Lee, junior outside hitter: Lee recorded a team-best 17 kills and added 11 digs for her second double-double of the season. She also logged three assists and a block.
Haleigh Washington, junior middle blocker: Washington posted a team-best four blocks and added seven kills; She led the team in blocks for the 14th time in the season.
Tori Gorrell, redshirt freshman: Gorrell logged seven kills in the match Saturday night, logging three in both the first and last sets.
Heidi Thelen, junior middle blocker: Thelen registered six kills and a pair of blocks in the loss. She scored four of her kills during the first set.
Kendall White, freshman defense specialist: White notched 15 digs in the match, leading Penn State for the 20th time during 2016.
Abby Detering, junior setter: Detering dished out a team-high 26 assists and added three kills and two digs